Sentinel Node Biopsy Radioac. Tracer Didn't Work?!

Hehewuti

Sentinel Node Biopsy Radioac. Tracer Didn't Work?!

Hehewuti

I'm wondering if this has happened to anyone else... I tried to get a Seninel Node Biopsy. After the radioactive tracer was (very painfully) injected they could not get it to show up in nodes. So, surgery cancelled.

The last time they tried to get a picture was about 2 hours after injections. Should they have waited longer for tracer to travel to nodes?

3 shots were injected into scar tissue. Could this have prevented travel of tracer?

The injections hurt a lot. The "people torturing me" told me nothing is given to patients to help that. And also, "Some women have a higher pain tolerance". Right!  So, is this correct? No numbing med. or sedative can be given?

I would appreciate any info on this stuff before I return to that place or look elsewhere.

Thanks, Wendy

crazy4carrots

Wendy -- my SNB failed also, although we went ahead with the surgery and the BS removed the first 4 nodes (negative).  She told me that I was only the second patient she'd ever had where the SNB failed (she's been doing this for over 20 years).

I don't remember too much pain involved in the injection although there was some.

Linda

mawhinney

I had my radioactive tracer injected late in the afternoon before my surgery.  It was injected into the vein in my arm in the crook between the upper and lower arm.  Other than a prick, I didn't feel a thing. The tracer did not immediately freely move though my arm. They had me do alot of walking but it still did not move. I was sent home for the night.  The next morning I had my unilateral mx and sentinel node biopsy. Overnight the tracer worked its way through my nodes.

 Why don't you talk to your BS about your experience with the tracer procedure.  If you are not satisfied with his/her reply, consider going elsewhere.  I had a poor experience with a mammograpphy center and now go elsewhere for my testing.

pj12

Wendy,

There was a lot of discussion about SNB a few months ago. LOTS of women thought it was very painful. Some had lidocaine added to the injection which had a numbing effect. Some had a salve rubbed on the skin first that helped with discomfort.  In my own case I just got the injections and thought it was pretty painful. It helped that the technician was slow to push the solution into the tissue. 

I didn't know it could not work. Did they massage your breast after injection? I guess anatomy could be different in some people. I think the assumption is that the solution drains thru the lymph system to the axilla but maybe yours drains medially? Was your urine blue or green that day? That shows the dye moved through your body.

pam 

SoCalLisa

I got both the tracer and the blue dye..

I also had numbing so there was no pain

M360

Wendy,

The doctor who gave me my injection right into the breast told me this is really going to hurt. I had nothing before hand.   However for me it didn't hurt at all.  He said I was one of the few who didn't have pain.  Thank goodness I had this for I had positive nodes then besides my mastectomy and SNB, I had a auxiliary node dissection.  Just to let you know they gave me the injection and waited for four hours then checked to see if it was working into the nodes.    I hope this helps and that you find a place that will be more understanding that this hurt you, and that they work with you to numb the area ahead of time LMX (lidocaine cream) can be given to numb the area.  I was given this for my guided image biopsy of my tumor before they did a lidocaine injection, it really helped and I never felt a thing.  

barbe1958

I got my injections - 4 - in around my areola the day before my surgery. I was told it needed those 24 hours to work through the system. IMHO I think waiting only a couple of hours is pretty optimistic.

I asked if I was going to get a numbing shot and the tech said "Do you REALLY want 5 needles?" 

DancerMel28

Hi, I had mine injected into my breast near wear my lump was (and yes it hurt!).  They only waited around half an hour then tried to scan but nothing showed up. I had to massage the area for a while and then it worked and they got the scans they needed.

rkt

I had lymphoscintography day before my right mastectomy.  They injected me, went back at 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours and 8 hours, and the radioactive material never moved - They kept telling me to massage the breast to help it move (boy, was that weird, trying to massage breast unobtrusively I kept meeting another lady in the waiting room who was having repeated scans also, so I was not alone in having this material not move - I guess, normally, the material has moved enough in the first two hours to get a good read on which are the sentinel nodes.  The next day, surgeon injected the blue dye, and massaged for half hour, but finally gave up.  I had given her the go ahead for the node disection if she couldn't identify the sentinel node.  I did have green urine for 2 to 3 days after the surgery, so the stuff did eventually move, just not the route they expected it to

Becky

Cowgirl13

I had my sentinel node biopsy right during my lumpectomy surgery (California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco--and boy are they wonderful). No pain, no nothing.  I can't believe the pain you all have to go thru--it sounds like torture.  Hehewuti, talk to your surgeon and make them give you a numbing agent--if they won't i would have someone else do it. I just can't believe what they do-i'd have post traumatic stress disorder after something like that. 

Good luck, sweetie. 

lobygirl

I had my mastectomy in 2007. The injections for sentinel node hurt terribly,and it didn't

work, but the surgery went on and 10 out of thirteen nodes were taken. I ask the surgeon later

why there was no numbing,he seemed to blame it on the tech.

JulieC

I had the tracer injected the day before.  It was painful.  I've posted most of the details on other threads.  They had me wait about 30 minutes and did a scan and you could see all of the little bits moving out like little ants.  I went in the next morning for the SNB and went straight to radiology to make sure everything had dispursed over night.  The blue dye wasn't injected until I was out for surgery.  I had bright blue (think raspberry sno cones) urine and I still have a blue discoloration on my breast and it has been 2 years since the procedure.

Sherry9316

After reading everyone's experience with the radioactive injection, I am even more fearful.  My surgery is scheduled for Tuesday (May 4) and I am to report to radiology at the hospital at 7:00 a.m. that same morning for this injection. From what I am reading, this injection goes directly into the breast in or near where the tumor is.  Needles are not my friend!  I had a very hard time with my core needle biopsy. I was doing my Lamaze breathing for all it was worth.  After 3 painful shots, I did not feel the final numbing one. I was under the assumption there would be some sort of numbing shot prior to the radioactive shot.  But that does not seem to be anyone's experience that has posted.  Should I call my surgeon on Monday and request something?

barbe1958

I don't have the blue discolouration on my breast anymore because my breasts came off....sigh. I kinda forgot about that blue spot....

mittmott

I had no pain during the injection.  However, my dye didn't work either, so I had an axillary node dissection on one side, and a sentinel node biopsy on the other side.

Leah_S

My surgeon used a lidocaine spray for the SNB. Some people will apply EMLA cream themselves, so if you're told they don't give anythiing that would be something you can do.

I think you're supposed to apply it beforehand and then cover your breast in saran wrap (yeah, sounds weird, but that's what people did).

Best of luck.

Leah

mamabeth

I had this done about 4 weeks ago and yes there is help for the injection pain.  They placed a patch with numbing med on it over my breast and left it there for about  2 hours before injecting the nuclear med.  Then after the injection there was another 2 1/2 hour wait after giving the medicine time to find the path.  All this was done in same day surgery. 

There were 5 or 6 injections around the areola.

I hope you find the right people to help you.  Don't be afraid to ask the surgical staff what their procedure is.

Best of luck,

Beth

LRM216

I had it done as well and experienced no pain whatsoever.  I received a numbing cream first, then lidocaine and never felt a thing.  I was petrified however, after all the stories I had heard.  I just don't understand why some of us are given creams, lidocaine, etc., while others of us are made to suffer greatly.  There is just no excuse for that to happen at all.  My tracer didn't work either, but they used some kind of radioactive thing on them and ended up taking only one which was clear.  I did have some blue spots for a little while but if I remember correctly, the dye only lasted for a little over a week or so. 

Linda

Sherry9316

Had my surgery yesterday and I am happy to report that the injection I feared so greatly turned out to be much less painful than I was anticipating.  My tech was very professional, very caring and did a good job. He kept telling me that he understood my anxiety as the injection would be going into a very sensitive area of my body.  I then asked him if I could inject him in a sensitive area of his body so he would have a "better" understanding!  It was really no more than a quick bee sting and was over in 2-3 seconds.